


Regards

by fullbrave



Category: Bravely Default (Video Game) & Related Fandoms
Genre: Fix-It, Gen, If Bravely Second won't let Ringabel talk to all his friends then I'll do it myself, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-17
Updated: 2020-06-17
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:27:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24773884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fullbrave/pseuds/fullbrave
Summary: Ringabel leaves, again, but not before he pays a visit to someone dear.
Relationships: Agnès Oblige & Ringabel, Agnès/Ringabel if you want it to be
Comments: 10
Kudos: 11





	Regards

For Ringabel, goodbyes are hard. They aren’t his style. Every parting in his life thus far has been punctuated not by words but by the sudden absence of things, of places, of people. If he had it his way every time, there would be no endings to speak of, but since all things must end he prefers to make his exits as silent as possible. This time, in this strange place where his only friends stand gazing at him expectantly, he has no such choice. He grits his teeth, smiles, and delivers as lighthearted a farewell as he can muster.

Thank heavens it’s almost over.

“I have a special request for you as well, Tiz.”

“Of course,” says Tiz. “Anything you say.” How very like him.

Ringabel opens his mouth to say something daft, but before he can, something in the air smacks him to his senses. Maybe it’s the cold, or maybe it’s the too-familiar aura that permeates the throne room— that imposing frame on the wall that somehow invokes memories of a painting it no longer carries. He stares at that frame for a long moment before he speaks.

Then he looks back to Tiz, and smiles. “Take care of yourself, won’t you?”

Edea arches an eyebrow. “Well, well,” she says. “A special request indeed!”

Tiz just laughs. “Same to you, Ringabel. We’ll see you again soon, won’t we?”

“That you will, my dear Tiz. You have my word.”

Honestly, that might depend upon one’s definition of the word _soon_ , but it’s a promise Ringabel intends to keep, even if he doesn’t know how.

“And you’re _sure_ you can’t stay just a little longer?” Edea clasps one hand over her heart, no longer meeting his eyes. “It’s been so long, after all…”

Ringabel sighs. Of course, if it were up to him, he would stay for hours, until the time apart felt like no time at all and his friends were sick of the sound of his voice. But duty calls. He steps forward and pulls Edea into a hug. “I’m afraid so, my dear. Urgent business.” Even if that’s not entirely true — he _could_ tarry a few minutes longer — there’s something he must absolutely do before he leaves Luxendarc today.

And so he steps back, though it takes all of his willpower, and wears what he hopes is a carefree smile as he clutches a teleport stone in one hand. “Until we meet again, my friends!”

As the light of the teleport spell spirals up and away, so does the frigid gloom of Vampire Castle, and in its place comes shimmering sunlight and a warm breeze tinged with a sweet brine. Ringabel breathes an involuntary sigh of relief even as he nearly loses his footing on the cobblestone path where he now finds himself, and he blinks the sun out of his eyes as he gazes up, to the quaint little town that is Caldisla and the castle that sits at its peak.

Perhaps he hadn’t been entirely honest when he spoke of urgent business to Edea, but he hadn’t been entirely _dis_ honest either. This might not be business, but it is urgent indeed.

When he strolls into the throne room, all of the sweet nostalgia that followed him up the winding path to the castle very quickly takes a turn for the uncomfortable. For a moment he stops in his tracks, fiddling with the helmet tucked under his arm, before making his way towards the figure stationed at the front of the room. At the sound of footsteps, the Dark Knight whirls around.

“Ah,” he says, visibly stiffening. “It’s you again.”

Ringabel’s last interaction with Alternis had been brief for a few reasons. Firstly, Ringabel saw no point in dragging it on once he learned that he wouldn’t be speaking to Agnès. Secondly, speaking to one’s alternate self by means of a magical stone was just too strange, even for him.

Perhaps he should have counted that stone as a blessing, though, because speaking like this? Face-to-face? This is far stranger.

“Are you here to see her holiness?” Alternis asks. “I’m afraid she will still be a few minutes, as—” he stops with a sputter as Ringabel’s hand lands on his shoulder. The sound of metal striking metal doesn’t exactly lend itself to the casual gesture he’s aiming for, but he persists.

“Yes, of course, I’m sure she’ll be along soon. You’ll find I’m a very patient man. Now—” as he speaks, he walks in a half circle while gently nudging the Dark Knight backward, until the two have more or less swapped places — “Would you be so kind as to leave us? I swear to you I will allow no harm to come to her holiness in your absence.”

Alternis makes an odd sound that might be a word, might be a cough — the helmet makes it difficult to tell — and looks Ringabel up and down. “I— I’m not sure if I—”

“Look at it this way,” says Ringabel, as he dons his own helmet. “If you can’t trust me, who _can_ you trust?”

After the quiet second it takes for those words to sink in, it appears Alternis can’t argue. He gives a curt nod, and drops the shattered pendant he’s been clutching into Ringabel’s outstretched hand. Then he turns on his heel and leaves without another word. Ringabel finally exhales.

He stands like that for a few moments, maybe a few minutes. Inhaling, exhaling, turning the pendant over in his palm as he stares out at the empty throne room. It feels like only days ago that he knelt in this very spot with his friends. Had they been receiving some honour from the king? Maybe, but in hindsight, that was the moment when the four of them chose to begin their journey together. Promised, without words, to stay together to the end. It makes his heart ache to think of it now. He turns his head to gaze up at the throne, just as they did that day— and just as he does, the door behind it opens.

Out steps Agnès, and Ringabel only sees her for a split second before he snaps his head back around. He’s not sure why the sight of her makes him flinch. In any case, he stands straight as a rod and keeps his gaze fixed on the wall as she walks down the steps behind him.

“Thank you, Sir Alternis,” she says as she comes around to face him, and he can no longer avert his eyes. “I appreciate your patience.”

She’s... radiant. Not that that’s anything new, but it _has_ been two years, and seeing her like this — standing tall, wearing not only this regal new garb of hers but also the brightest smile he’s ever seen light her face — Ringabel can’t help but be speechless for a second or two.

He coughs, noting with a frown that the resulting sound is not unlike the one a flustered Alternis made moments ago. “Of course,” he says. He holds out his hand. “Here. Er.. your pendant.” And then he kicks himself internally for how stiff he sounds.

Agnès gives him a strange look — or maybe that’s just his imagination — but she reaches out and takes the pendant from his hand. She smiles again. “Thank you for keeping it safe.” She turns as she clasps it around her neck, taking a few steps toward a tall stained-glass window. “I trust nothing happened while I was away?”

“Nothing to report, Lady Vestal.”

There’s a long pause, and when Ringabel turns to look at Agnès, she’s definitely staring at him.

“Is… something the matter?”

Her face breaks into a grin. “Ringabel, is that you?”

He blinks back at her from under his helmet and quickly replays his words in his mind. Did he say _Lady Vestal_?

Oops.

Now his façade crumbles as well, and he doubles over laughing, lifting the helmet off his face as he rises back up. “And here I thought I was being so clever.”

“Nonsense, I knew something was amiss the moment I saw you.” She’s walking his way, and then her hand is on his shoulder, and before he knows it she’s pulled him into a hug. Before he knows it, too, he’s hugging her back, and they hold each other like they never intend to let go.

They do, of course, but only after what feels like ages.

“I can’t stay long,” says Ringabel. “Technically, I’m not even supposed to be here, but when I tried to call earlier, you weren’t there, and—”

“It’s alright, Ringabel,” she says, still wearing that blinding smile. “I’m just happy to see you again. Why, we all thought…” There, she trails off, and the smile doesn’t exactly fall from her face, it just changes. He looks down.

“I’m sorry,” he says, his voice barely above a whisper. “I never meant to do that to you— to all of you — but the work I do now… it requires a certain amount of secrecy. If we’re being honest, I’m not even allowed to tell you that much.” He laughs, eyes still fixed on the floor.

“You’re out there protecting us all, aren’t you?” He looks up at that, and when he does he sees something like pride shining in her eyes. “How very like you.”

Now he smiles. “Well, what about you, Your Holiness?” He punctuates her proper title with a wink. “Leading Luxendarc into a new age of unity? All in a day’s work for you, surely.”

She laughs. “Hardly.”

“I’m sure it’s not easy. But if anyone can do it, it’s you.” He watches as her eyes begin to mirror the same wistful look that must be all over his face, and he knows they’re thinking the same thing; They both may be strong, but every challenge in life is easier when a friend is near.

“I suppose… there’s nothing I can say to convince you to stay?” Agnès ventures. “It would be so wonderful if the four of us… if we could all forget our troubles, just for one day.”

Ringabel finds he needs to take a deep breath suddenly. That would be wonderful indeed. “One day, I hope we can,” is all he can think to say. “But for now…”

Agnès nods, and Ringabel is no stranger to the fire in her eyes. “For now we must all do what we can.”

Again, he lets out a long breath he didn’t realize he was holding. “Yes.”

“Well then,” she says, and takes one of his hands in hers. “I’d better let you get back to it. But thank you for coming to see me.” She smiles. “What a joy to see you again.”

He’s smiling now too, a smile bright enough to rival her own. “Oh, Agnès,” he says. “I wouldn’t have missed this for all the worlds.” 

He has a feeling he came pretty close to missing it, in fact — but that only makes him feel all the more grateful.

When he’s almost to the castle entrance, he hears her call out from behind him one last time.

“Ringabel!”

He turns.

“We _will_ be together again soon, won’t we?”

He smiles. 

“You have my word.”

And this time, he feels far more confident that he can keep his promise.


End file.
